


there are worse things I could do (than go with a girl)

by fuhrelise



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: 1950s Slang, Alternate Universe - 1950s, Alternate Universe - High School, Closeted Character, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Homophobia, Inspired by Grease, Slurs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-22 16:00:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30041145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fuhrelise/pseuds/fuhrelise
Summary: Purgatory is a small town, so it's always best to select carefully who you tell your secrets to.Because rumours travel fast.And Nicole Haught's was the biggest rumour yet.
Relationships: Jeremy Chetri & Xavier Dolls, Waverly Earp & Wynonna Earp, Waverly Earp/Nicole Haught, Wynonna Earp & Nicole Haught
Comments: 7
Kudos: 56





	1. summer lovin'

**Author's Note:**

> uneventful summers call for uneventful stories and this is the biggest idiocy yet.
> 
> I posted this a long time ago and then deleted it (cause I'm a fucking coward) so now I am reposting it
> 
> there will be updates every week so I hope I make the wait worth it
> 
> there's nothing else to say, enjoy the bullshit I write
> 
> god works hard but fanfic writers work harder,  
> fuhrelise

Summers at Purgatory were rare occasions since the town was covered in snow for the majority of the year. They were hot but chilly at the same time because of the consistent wind that shook the trees but Waverly couldn’t be bothered by the weather. She was too busy doing something — or rather someone — else. Nicole Haught had her pressed against a big rock, their lips pressed together and her thumbs hooked in Waverly's belt hoops.

It wasn’t the first time they had done this; meeting on the beach on a sunny afternoon to make out under a rock. It had begun that summer, following a drunken mistake on the Earp girl’s part. Since then, they had drifted apart but then subsequently reunited that summer. Nicole was starting her last year of school in a few days and Waverly her third year, which she was so nervous about that she would get butterflies every time she thought about it.

This time, though, her butterflies were caused by something else. Her hands found their way to Nicole's short-cut hair, a cut, Waverly thought, that really suited her, and the redhead slipped her tongue between her lips. Their tongues melted into each other until Waverly pulled away to gasp for air.

The small girl looked around quickly. The beach wasn't the safest place to do this sort of thing, but Nicole had reassured her with smooth-talking and well-meaning words. She was right, no one did, but Waverly couldn't help but be paranoid.

Nicole nuzzled her cheek and gave her a dimpled smile. "What's up?"

Waverly shrugged, "Nothing, just-” something moved behind her and Waverly whipped her head in fear only to watch a lizard scurry away back across the sand.

Nicole chuckled and shook her head. "Waves, you worry too much."

"I know but... what if they catch us? You're almost eighteen, they could throw you in the cooler." Waverly tapped her fingers gently on Nicole's neck and bit her lip softly.

Nicole rolled her eyes and then met Waverly's again. They were soft and sincere when Waverly looked into them. "Waves. I'm fucking terrified of someone seeing us, you know that. I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't think this place was safe. Hell, this is the only safe place."

Waverly nodded, her shoulders relaxing and the fist wrapped around her heart loosening. She gave Nicole a soft smile and leaned back in, gently cupping her cheeks. Waverly had never kissed anyone who kissed the way Nicole did, with that subtle gentleness as if asking permission to touch her with every kiss. Her lips were soft and they tasted differently from men's lips, Waverly had noticed. Every romantic book Waverly had read lied because Nicole didn't smell of roses or of vanilla, she just smelled of Nicole. It was a soft and delicate scent, like a bar soap you would buy at an organic market. The fireworks that went off in your stomach weren’t fireworks at all, just a swarm of butterflies fluttering around threatening to break free of their cage.

She felt like this every time she was with Nicole and she was drunk on the feeling.

A honk resonated in her ears and Waverly groaned, pulling away and placing her forehead on Nicole's shoulder. "Damn, it's six already?" Nicole murmured.

Waverly stared at the sand at Nicole's feet, watching as it had gone from it's blinding white hue to a pink. She pulled her head back up to meet Nicole's smirking face.

"What?"

"Did I tell you you look far out with this outfit?" Nicole said in a low voice which made Waverly blush like crazy, lowering her gaze to stare at her yellow crop top tucked in her sky-blue shorts.

"You don't look half bad yourself," Waverly retorted, taking in Nicole's blue shirt and cuffed jeans.

Waverly locked eyes with Nicole and kissed her again, her tongue immediately invading Nicole’s mouth. The kiss was once again interrupted by honking, only longer this time.

Waverly groaned and slowly started to pull herself away from Nicole, but it seemed the redhead wouldn’t budge. “Wait,” she said, “I gotta tell you something.”

”Shoot.”

Nicole inhaled. “This“ — she motioned between the two of them — “is over. We can’t do it anymore. Not now that school starts.”

Waverly frowned, playing with a strand of Nicole’s hair, “Why not?”

“We can’t risk getting caught, Waves.” Nicole reasoned. “Besides, it’s our last year. We need to study for school.”

Waverly blew a raspberry. “Since when do you care about school, Miss Too-Cool-For-School?”

Nicole laughed and Waverly bit the inside of her cheek. “What even is ‘this’ anyway?” She murmured to herself, but Nicole heard.

The ginger opened her mouth to say something more but it was drowned out by the honking.

”I’m coming, Wynonna!” Waverly shouted. She met Nicole’s eyes again and gave her a small smile, “Kiss goodbye?”

Nicole kissed her one last time and let her go.

”I’ll see you at school, yeah?” Waverly asked as she made her way off the beach, up the steep sand and to the road, where her sister had parked her Jaguar XK120. Waverly shook her feet free of the sand and when she opened the passenger door, Wynonna turned down Jerry Lee Lewis’ ‘High School Confidential' and smiled at her sister.

“Hey kiddo,” she reached over and punched her little sister’s shoulder, who frowned at the nickname and buckled her belt “So how was the action at the beach?”

Waverly whipped her head to stare at her with wide-eyes “What are you talking about, Wynonna?”

She shrugged, her leather jacket rolling off her shoulders. She tied it around her waist and pulled a cigarette from behind her ear “Did you and Mystery Boy have a fun time?”

Waverly nodded and smiled softly. “Yeah, we did.”

Wynonna put on her dark sunglasses, lit her cigarette, propped up her elbow on the open windowsill and took a drag, puffing out the smoke absentmindedly. She opened her mouth as if to say something but shut it immediately, putting in the keys and cranking the engine.

Waverly sat back, her head resting on the headrest and watching the beach disappear by her. She licked her lips and they still tasted of Nicole. She smiled to herself, hoping that won’t be the last time she would get to kiss Nicole Haught.

♬ ♪ ♫

Nicole honked the horn for a few seconds. It was longer than the first two; she was getting impatient.

“Move it, Holliday, or I’m leavin’ your ass behind!” She shouted, honking the horn three more times to make her statement clear.

The rest of the boys were sitting in the back seats, arms hanging outside the rolled-down windows as they banged their hands on the doors of the car and howling at the house to taunt Doc.

“C’mon, Henry! Aroof! Arrroof!” Perry Croft called, hitting the side of the car with his hand a few more times.

Nicole turned in her seat, “Hey, enough with the bangin’! I spent good dough on this.”

Finally, the front door of the big grey house opened and out came through the front lawn John Henry in his usual white button-up, brown suspenders attached to his matching pants and his cowboy hat on top of his head. He brushed his tiny moustache with his index and thumb — “It’s a work in progress,” he had said — and walked breezily to the car. The boys in the back welcomed him with a few high fives and smacking him on the ass as he walked past the back seats. Nicole watched him through the rearview mirror. He slid into the shotgun seat, next to her.

“Yo, Haught. Bobbed your hair this summer, did ya?” He nodded and pointed at his hair to prove his point. Nicole consciously reached for a loose ginger strand to twirl it around her finger.

“Why? Does it look bad?” She checked her reflection in the rearview mirror but Doc immediately stopped her. “No, man. It’s lookin' righteous.”

Nicole smiled and nodded to thank him. She took another look in the rearview mirror, then decided to check her outfit again: white t-shirt, black leather jacket, long denim jeans rolled up to her ankle and white bucks. All looking well, Nicole thought as she patted down a crinkle in her shirt. Doc fixed himself in his seat and Nicole started the engine, driving away from his house. The cowboy turned to the boys in the back seat. “How was your summer, boys?”

Perry shrugged as he lit a cigarette. “Stayed home with my pops. Hung out with my girl a couple of times. Nothing too special."

Perry handed Doc his cigarette and he took a drag before passing it to Nicole. She stuck it between her lips and let it sit there.

"Wanna know what I did this summer?" Jeremy jumped from the back, sticking his head between the two front seats to scan their faces with a cheerful smile.

"Who cares?" muttered Doc but Jeremy kept talking. "There was a science fair at Shorty's and guess who won first place, assholes!" He pulled out a medal from his pocket and waved it in their faces. Doc was quick to snatch the medal from Jeremy and inspect it. Jeremy stretched his arms towards him to take back his prize but with Perry holding him down, it was no use.

John Henry laughed and fixed the hat on his head. “What a dweeb you are.”

Xavier Dolls reached over and took the medal from Doc's hands. He handed it back to Jeremy and then sat back in his seat, glaring at Doc in the process.

Nicole grinned at the cowboy’s surprised face and looked back at Dolls through the rearview mirror. "What about you Dolls? D'ya go see your family this summer?"

He fixed the baseball cap on his head, crossed his arms and shrugged. "Yeah. Summer was dullsville."

"Ain't nobody sayin' dullsville these days 'cept you, grandpa." Doc laughed. Perry and Jeremy joined but Dolls stared out the window ignoring him.

“What about you, Doc?” asked Nicole, hitting the tip of his hat and making it fall over his piercing blue eyes. He cackled and pulled it back up. “Nothin' much. Got a few chicks in bed and I didn’t see no Scorpion the whole summer. Breezy summer, breezy summer.”

Scorpion, notorious name of the notorious band of kids who liked hanging around Purgatory. they came from the central city and loved terrorizing Purgatory kids and locals alike. The Birds, Nicole’s group, were old enemies of theirs and usually were the only ones able to keep up with them.

Nicole took a drag of the cigarette and passed it back to Doc. She frowned and cranked down the radio as Elvis Presley's newest song started playing but after receiving a complaint by Jeremy, she reluctantly turned it back up and endured the rest of the drive to school with the sound of three senior boys shouting the lyrics to "One Night".

She glanced at Dolls through the mirror to find him fast asleep and sighed, wishing to be home doing the same thing he was.

Nicole parked her black Chrysler Imperial in a different parking spot than her usual. She drove by her typical spot and found it filled by a grey Bentley R Type. The gang stuck out half their bodies outside the window to shout at its owner, waving fists at him and swearing to beat him for owning that piece of junk and stealing their spot.

♬ ♪ ♫

There was only one thing Waverly dreaded about starting high school again and it had everything to do with possibly seeing the Pink Ladies again.

Waverly had been hanging out with Wynonna's group of friends since freshman year on their mother’s orders to “help your little sisters find some friends” and the only real reason Waverly stuck around was so she could talk to Chrissy. Waverly never spoke to Stephanie or Mercedes because they never had anything in common to talk about. She always felt like the third — more like the fifth wheel of the group — but she didn't mind as long as she had her sister and best friend to conversate with.

She hadn't seen any of the Pink Ladies all summer, them being busy travelling and going on vacation while Waverly was stuck in Purgatory, her mother not earning nearly enough money to take a break. Since their father had bailed on them, money was coming in short and Michelle constantly worked double shifts and even then she barely made enough to keep a roof over their heads. Wynonna had had a job at a bar called Pussy Willow's over the summer; the money still wasn't enough but it was something. Waverly had worked at Shorty's for a few months but dropped it before school started. That was around the time she started seeing Nicole.

The concrete burned the sole of her white bucks as Waverly and her sister made their way onto school grounds. The front yard was flooded with students; small groups stood around talking, some jocks were taunting the new years and the usual geeks, a couple was making out against the tree they passed by.

"This is it, Waves. I’m finally getting out of this shithole. Good luck surviving without me, kid." Wynonna said monotone, shoving her hands into her leather jacket, her sunglasses covering her eyes and a cigarette dancing between her lips as she talked.

Waverly nodded, scanning the front of the school a while longer. She noticed at the far left from the school entrance was blue metal tables. One of them had its seats filled by a group of girls wearing pink jackets, waving their way. Waverly smiled, recognizing the Pink Ladies from miles away. She and Wynonna made their way to the table.

Wynonna greeted them with a nod "Hiya, girls, great to see ya. Say, whatcha smokin', Merce?" Wynonna took a seat and Waverly followed suit, taking the empty spot next to Chrissy who beamed at her. Wynonna put her hand out and a girl with short red hair, Mercedes, handed her with trembling hands a rolled-up cig and Wynonna took a long, slow drag before puffing out the smoke.

“Some good stuff.” the older Earp hummed, handing back the cigarette.

“I-Is that mar-marijuana? Isn’t that illegal?” Waverly stammered shyly.

“Only if they catch you.” Stefanie Jones winked and took a drag of the roll-up before handing it to her. Waverly searched for words to politely decline but when she found none, she simply shook her head. The cigarette was passed to Chrissy.

“Chrissy, it’s been so long!” Waverly squeaked when her friend had passed the reefer back to Mercedes. “Where have you been all summer?”

“I’ve been travelling around the world! I went to Turkey last month, total drag.” The brunette smiled, rolling her eyes, “What about you?”

”Waverly’s been meeting up with a boy lately.” Wynonna cut in.

”A boy!” The group of girls exclaimed and Waverly felt the red creep onto her cheeks.

”Oh, Waves, you must tell me about him!” Chrissy exclaimed, grabbing her hand impatiently.

Waverly shook her head, looking at the ground shyly. I won’t tell, she wanted to say but Stephanie’s voice was louder, “Earp.”

“Yes?” The sisters said in unison. Waverly lowered her eyes when she realized she was speaking to Wynonna.

“We’re having a blast at my house after the game Friday. You in?”

Wynonna shrugged, pulling a cigarette out of her back pocket and sticking it behind her ear, probably saving it for later, “Sure.”

“Keen.”

The bell rang in the distance and the students in the front yard began to scatter and run to the front doors. Waverly got to her feet, “Gotta get to class, ladies. Wynonna, you coming?”

“Oh sure thing, Waves.” Wynonna stood and draped her arm around her little sister’s shoulders, turning to slowly walk in the school’s direction.

“We’ll walk you.” The older Earp looked over her shoulder and nodded “Let's go girls.”

They all stood reluctantly, pulling their school bags on their shoulders and grabbing their binders. The pink jackets made them stand out like sore thumbs.

Waverly realized how differently she had dressed from the other girls — wearing a red blouse, a pair of pants rolled up to her calf and white bucks — and felt almost embarrassed to walk with them.

“Heard there are some gone cats this year. Whaddaya think, Waves? See anything you like? Is your mystery boy among them?” Chrissy asked, teasingly bumping her hip against Waverly’s as she walked next to her. Wynonna was too busy talking to Mercedes and Stephanie was eyeing Waverly curiously.

Waverly smiled softly and shrugged, looking down at her feet, her mind wandering about the scum bag she had met that summer. “I don’t know. From what I saw, they all seem hot.”

“Hot?” cut in Stephanie. She threw her cigarette on the grass and put it out with her boot, “Honey, these boys are far out. Top of the class daddy-os.”

“Cut her some slack, she’s too busy swapping spit with her mystery boy.” Wynonna joked and Waverly shot her a glare. Stephanie shrugged and looked away.

Then, she came to a halt, grabbing Wynonna’s arm. The whole group stopped walking and followed her gaze towards the school entrance. A group of boys wearing matching leather jackets and white Ts stood by the front doors. One of them had a moustache and a cowboy hat and he pushed one of his friends away as he laughed at something they said. The ginger, whom Waverly recognized by her short hair cut, laughed along as she stumbled back before regaining her balance.

“Guys, I really need to get to class-“ Waverly was cut off as Chrissy squealed, grabbed her arm and pulled her towards the front of the school, the other girls running after the two of them. Waverly tried to break free of Chrissy’s grip but when she managed to do so, it was too late.

They had arrived at the school’s front doors. The front yard was empty and class was about to start. Waverly hoped this wouldn’t take long.

Stephanie stepped up, flashing a bright smile at the group “Hello, boys. And gal.” She added with a wink directed towards the ginger.

The group eyed them and Waverly felt the need to suddenly crawl into a hole and disappear.

Nicole nodded, “Hey Steph.” Then she looked over and caught sight of Waverly. She gave a short smile and a nod, “Hi, Waverly.”

Waverly shyly smiled back. Then, Stephanie said: “Haught.”

Nicole directed her attention away and Waverly sighed in relief. “I’m having a bash at mine after the homecoming game on Friday. You boys wanna stop by?”

“You got brew?” cut in Doc Holliday, crossing his arms and puffing out his chest. “Give me booze and I’ll give you one helluva party.” He flashed a grin at Wynonna, whose face was stoic. Waverly rolled her eyes, recognizing him from the many times he had come to the homestead to see her sister.

“‘Course.” Stefanie shrugged.

“Bitchin,” said Nicole. “We’ll be there.” She stuck a cigarette between her lips. The second bell rang and the boys followed Nicole into the school, heading for class.

The group of girls was left alone and soon they all went their separate ways. Waverly had to make a run for it just to get to class in time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't forget to leave kudos and comments!


	2. alone at a drive in

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> more angst, because i love hurting my readers
> 
> y'all won't get fluff for a while so uhh this is my apology letter
> 
> have fun but no too much fun,  
> fuhrelise

Purgatory High won the game easily, not that anyone was surprised since the team had been training for months and were hardly beat. Homecoming games weren’t Nicole’s scene. Every homecoming, the entire school would make a big deal about the game and celebrate the hell out of it; marching band playing the school anthem, jocks hollering like cavemen and cheerleaders doing cartwheels and crazy dances to send all the teenage boys in fervour and something to jack off to when they got home.

Nicole never liked them or any kinds of parties for that matter. She stood leaning against the side of her car, a cigarette lit between her lips. Doc and Dolls were drunk out of their minds by now, singing along to whatever song the band was playing and Perry had left to meet up with Chrissy time ago. Jeremy stood nervously by Dolls, holding him up when he almost fell over. Nicole smiled as the smaller boy tried to support the bodyweight of the muscular ex-football player.

The two had been friends since freshman year and Dolls had always been protective of the geek in a way. Whether it was Champ Hardy shoving him into lockers or Doc and Perry messing with him and teasing him, Dolls always had his back and it was well known that wherever Dolls went, Jeremy was sure to follow.

Nicole heard coach Nedley's voice over the speakers and rolled her eyes. Now was the turn for the big inspirational speech talking about how good everyone had been at tonight’s game and how they are sure they will win this year. All that inspirational crap only jocks and cheerleaders and teachers listened to.

Nicole took a drag of her cigarette and then made a face, puffing out the smoke immediately without letting it reach her lungs.

“Ugh, what the fuck Doc. This is the worst roll up I’ve ever had.” She threw the cig on the ground and stepped on it.

Doc, still drunk out of his mind, laughed and sprawled himself over the hood of Nicole’s car, a blue 1958 Chrysler Imperial.

“It ain’t like I could do much. I’m drunk!” He guffawed, throwing his head back. Dolls joined him, chuckling with a twinkle in his eyes and a dumb expression on his face.

“Get off, you’ll ruin the paint.” Nicole shoved Doc’s shoulder, who almost slid off the car onto the ground but picked himself up just in time, stumbling to regain his balance.

Nicole looked at Jeremy, who was sitting on the wooden fence near where Nicole had parked her car. He tapped his toes together nervously, peering at Dolls who sat by him on an unopened beer box on the ground. He was gently swaying, his eyes lost into the void. Nicole sighed and kicked a pebble "This blows.”

Jeremy nodded "Agreed. Should we sober them up and find Perry?"

Nicole nodded, pushing herself off her car and sticking her hands in the pockets of her leather jacket "I'll get Perry, you try to sober up these dipsticks."

She turned on her heels and walked through the parking lot, eyes scanning cars and faces as she tried to recognize which one belonged to Chrissy Nedley. The bonfire had been lit and the cheerleaders were dancing around it while everyone else gathered to celebrate and eat very cheap corn dogs. Not all, but a good amount of students were in the parking lot, drinking beer and smoking cigarettes and talking and laughing. One boy shoved his friend who fell on the floor laughing and Nicole had to jump to not trip over him. She really hated homecoming.

Her ears caught a familiar laughter a few feet in front of her and she headed that way, weaving through parked cars new and old. Perry and Chrissy were leaning against Chrissy's car, a bright pink 1953 Buick Roadmaster Skylark. The rest of the Pink Ladies stood around them, laughing and talking along. Nicole approached them and Stephanie immediately straightened herself.

"Let's go, Per. This place is a drag." Nicole bit her lip self-consciously.

Perry looked at her and laughed "Chill, man. You sound like my Ma." He patted Nicole's arm but she shrugged him away.

"Perry, let's go. Doc and Dolls are already hammered as fuck."

"Do you have to go?" Nicole directed her attention to Stefanie. She pouted "Can't you stay a little longer? We'll make it worth your while."

Nicole shook her head.

"Where's Holiday?" Wynonna asked, puffing out smoke from her roll-up.

"With Jeremy." Nicole deadpanned. Then, her attention shifted to Waverly. She looked away as soon as they made eye contact. Nicole lowered her eyes to the ground and caught sight of the empty bottles of beer on the floor.

"Is she even old enough to drink?" She said in a half-whisper, pointing at Waverly, who seemed to only shrink more and further into the shadow.

Wynonna scoffed and rolled her eyes "Don't be a drag, Haught. She didn't touch a drop and I'm surprised you haven't also. Since when do you care about what Waverly does anyhow?”

"I don't." Nicole shook her head, her eyes landing on Waverly briefly. She immediately felt a pang of guilt hitting her in the chest. The redhead shoved her hands in her pockets and shrugged "Whatever."

"You stopping at my house after this, right Haught?" Stephanie asked, a smirk wide on her face.

Nicole bit nervously at her thumb. She doesn't bite her nails, she just pretends to sometimes so she has time to think. But Perry decided for both of them "Course we are!"

He draped his arm around a wide-eyed Nicole, who stumbled as she held his weight. Perry grinned at her and his friend could smell the booze on his breath "Right, Haught?"

"Right, Haught?" echoed Stephanie, taking a step closer and looking at Nicole through her eyelashes. The ginger looked at Perry, then back at Stephanie. She bit her tongue; don't say it, Haught, don't give in.

"Sure. Let’s go, Per."

She adjusted Perry’s arm around her shoulders and walked away. When they were back to Nicole's car and out of earshot, she slammed Perry against the side of her car, her hand fisting his shirt. "What the fuck, Per!”

"I'm just tryin' to be friendly. Chill out, man." He pried Nicole's hand away from his shirt and smoothed the wrinkles.

"I can't just show up at Stephanie Jones' house. Her parents hate me, they will make a carpet out of me!” She scolded Perry, almost yelling now.

"Not everything is about you, Haught. 'Sides, you already said yes, ain't like you can back out now."

Nicole raised her fist and stepped forward ready to strike Perry right in the jaw. The boy shut his eyes in anticipation, but in the end, she decided against it. Instead, she slid into the driver seat and looked into the rearview mirror. Doc and Dolls sat in the backseats, the first one drooling in his sleep and the second staring at the floor with a blank expression on his face. Jeremy was squished between them. Nicole sighed, fingers threading through her hair. Fuck homecoming. Perry slid into the shotgun seat and she started the engine.

♬ ♪ ♫

"Oh my God, I can't believe your parents got you a new FM!" Chrissy exclaimed, marvelling at Stefanie's pastel pink record player, her hand running along the needle.

"Isn't it the ginchiest? Hey, paws off!" She smacked Chrissy's hand away. The girl crawled back to sit on the edge of the bed next to Waverly, rubbing her hand offended.

They had reached Stephanie's house before homecoming was over because they had suddenly grown tired of it. They had seen the same shit every year so skipping homecoming wasn't skipping much for the others. Waverly didn’t mind either way.

Everyone had stripped down to their pyjamas, given to them by Stephanie. Stephanie's parents weren't home and they were blasting music from her brand new record player. Mercedes and Stephanie sang along to Prince's "Don't Be Cruel" as they brought out snacks for them all to share. Stephanie spread out all kinds of candy on the bed — Beer Nuts, Turkish Taffy, Charleston Chew, Cup-O-Golds, any kind one could think of — while Mercedes came back in the room with two plates filled with sandwiches and a bottle of booze.

"Yo! Where'd you get this?" exclaimed Wynonna, walking out of the bathroom and snatching the bottle of wine from Mercedes' hands.

"Daddy's got a whole basement full. He won't notice if one goes missing." Stephanie took back the bottle and cracked it open. The group sat on the floor in a circle. Stephanie gulped down some of the wine and passed it onto the other girls. When the bottle reached Waverly, she shook her head no.

"Oh come on, just take a swig." Stephanie pressed on, nudging Waverly's arm with the bottle.

“Hey. She said no,” snapped Wynonna, taking the bottle from Stephanie’s hand and downing a gulp of the red liquid. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

Waverly lowered her head in embarrassment. She didn’t want to be at Stephanie Jones’ house, drinking wine and listening to horrible music. She wanted to be with Nicole, under that rock at the beach, kissing her lips and tangling her fingers in her hair. Hanging out with them, Waverly realized they weren't her kind of crowd and she wished to be as far from them as possible. She was also far too tired to pay attention to the idiotic things the girls were saying but suddenly her ears automatically trained onto the conversation.

“You want to light the place on fire? No smoking.” Stephanie snatched the cigarette from Wynonna’s mouth and Waverly saw her sister’s jaw clench.

If there was one thing Wynonna hated more than anything was when people took her things right out of her hands. Waverly prepared herself for her sister to snap at Stephanie but Wynonna simply unclenched her jaw and stared at the roll-up in her hands.

Chrissy snapped Waverly out of her daze with a nudge in the ribs “Look at my hubby.”

She was showing Waverly a picture of her and Perry, sporting huge grins in front of Niagara Falls. She and Perry loved travelling together, ever since they were kids and their parents would plan trips together. When they began dating in freshman year, they travelled on their own. Waverly smiled “How cute!”

“I know, right?” Chrissy beamed at the photo. Stephanie snatched it out of her hand and inspected it, her nose and eyes scrunching up “Y’all look circled.”

Chrissy harrumphed and took the photo out of Stephanie’s perfectly manicured hands. “Fuck you, Jones.”

“Love you too, Nedley.” Stephanie blew her a kiss and shot her a wink and Chrissy rolled her eyes, tucking the photos away.

Wynonna put a roll-up into the pocket of her jean jacket and took the bottle, taking the last swig and emptying it. She then placed it in the centre and spun it.

Mercedes clapped excitedly but stopped when Stephanie stuck out her foot and stopped the bottle “When did this become a spin-the-bottle situation?”

“When I chugged the rest of this shit alcohol down and decided that I'm bored enough to play this dumbass game,” Wynonna replied flatly.

Stephanie smiled coldly “Fine, but I’m going first.”

She spun the bottle and it landed on Mercedes. “Merce.”

The red-headed was turned towards the small television behind her, eyes glued to the screen. Wynonna hit her with a pillow and she turned around startled. “What! What, what, I’m listening. What?”

“Truth or dare?” Stephanie popped a candy in her mouth and a loud crunch echoed in the room.

“Uh, I- truth?”

“Is it true your brother is still in the cooler?”

Waverly turned her attention away from her shoes and looked at Mercedes and it didn’t take her long to realize everyone else was too.

Mercedes looked incredibly uncomfortable. Her hands were trembling, which was something that happened often. She held her fingers a few inches away from her lips. Wynonna cleared her throat and nudged Mercedes’ foot with her own, “Your turn, Merce.”

The redhead looked down at the bottle and was quietly staring at it for a second. Then, as if a bolt of electricity struck her, she weakly spun the bottle and it landed on Chrissy, who pulled away from leaning on Waverly's shoulder and sat straight up. A big smile settled on her face as she perkily said "Yep?"

"Truth or dare?" Mercedes muttered into the straw of her Coca Cola bottle, relieved to see the attention fade from her.

Chrissy tapped her chin thoughtfully and hummed, “Dare.”

Waverly grinned. Classic Chrissy Nedley, throwing herself head-first into danger as per usual.

Nothing had changed about Chrissy as far as Waverly could tell: she still had the same chestnut hair and chocolate brown eyes and sweet smile. She also had the same fun-loving personality that united them as friends. Waverly almost frowned as she thought back to all the hide and seek they would play in the backyard of the Earp homestead and the countless times they had prepared tea parties with their dolls. Their friendship faltered through middle school when she met Stephanie. Waverly was never really interested in being Stephanie Jones’ loyal puppy but she didn’t blame or hate Chrissy for becoming one.

“I dare you to eat a mouthful of sour candy.” Mercedes handed Chrissy a bag of the sweets Stephanie had brought. Chrissy opened it and tilted back her head, letting all the candy fall into her open mouth. She chewed slowly and made a face every time she would bite into the sour chewy sweets. She was on the verge of tears, water droplets forming at the corners of her eyes and falling down her cheeks quickly before dropping on the pink carpet they were sat on. Everyone was cheering her on, including Waverly. The Earp girl laughed and shouted along with the rest of the group until Chrissy finally managed to swallow the entire mouthful of sour candy.

The ladies cheered and clapped her on the back.

“Didn’t know you had it in ya, Nedley,” commented Stephanie, popping a Turkish taffy in her mouth.

Waverly chuckled and grinned brightly “You okay, Chris?”

Her friend nodded with a shiver, her entire body shaking. She wiped her mouth and reached for the bottle “My turn, assholes.”

It landed on Stephanie, who picked truth.

“List every guy you’ve done it with.”

“That ain’t no challenge. Let’s see... Perry Crofte, for one.” Chrissy tightened her jaw and her ears turned red but Stephanie kept listing off names, counting off her fingers. They eventually had to stop her when she reached a certain number.

“I’m thirsty. I’m grabbing another bit of wine.” Wynonna announced, skipping out of the room and running downstairs.

The bottle went spinning again and landed on Waverly.

“Little Earp,” Stephanie said mischievously. Waverly swallowed hard, knowing this was not going to go down well. “Truth or dare?”

“I, uh, truth.”

“Is it true what happened to your family?”

The buzzing feeling of happiness and adrenaline she had moments ago stopped and Waverly felt her entire body shut down. Her shoulders slumped and her eyes stared ahead with no expression. Her mouth fell slightly open, shock clear on her face.

“Heard your daddy went real ape. My folks think he got rid of her himself.” Stephanie continued, breaking bits off the chocolate bar in her hand and shoving them in her mouth one after the other. Her eyes were dark and her smile ambiguous.

"I..." Waverly was at loss for words. Her jaw moved uselessly and her vocal cords failed to produce any sound. She looked around panicked. Mercedes was distracted by her nails and Chrissy was nervously biting her lip. The sudden silence was deafening. The Monotones sang through the RCA, the tones of “The Book of Love” playing softly in the background.

“Well, Earp?” Stephanie pressed on and Waverly’s tongue turned to mush.

“I don’t—“

“Are you writing a book? Cut the gas, Jones.” Chrissy growled defensively grabbing Waverly’s arm.

“Yo, what’s going on?” Wynonna had returned with a bottle in hand.

“I don’t want to play this game anymore.” Waverly felt suddenly nauseous.

A honking car and hollering coming from the driveway sliced through the tension. Mercedes, Chrissy and Stephanie all squealed and ran to the windows, giggling and chattering with a low voice. Waverly was still sitting cross-legged on the floor, Wynonna kneeled next to her and asked her what had happened. Waverly shook her head, glad the attention had been lifted off her and pried her arm away from Wynonna's grasp. She stood to join the others and see what the fuss was all about.

Looking out, Waverly recognized a Chrysler Imperial parked in the driveway. There were the group of boys Waverly had been forced to meet the first day of school. The tall bulky football player — Wynonna told her his name was Xavier Dolls — leaned against Jeremy who was trying hard not to fall over under his weight. Doc was drunkenly calling for the girls, shouting things like “Rapunzel, let down your hair!” Perry Croft and Nicole Haught leaned against the hood of the car. Perry smiled brightly at Chrissy and waved their way.

Chrissy squealed and rushed downstairs and out the front door. Mercedes and Stephanie followed her and, with a sigh of relief, so did Waverly.

As soon as they reached the parking space outside, Chrissy jumped into Perry’s arms, their lips crashing into one another. Nicole stuck out her tongue at the image.

“Hello boys,” Stephanie spoke cockily as she made her way down the path and to the parked car. She turned to Nicole and winked, “and girls.”

Nicole’s face remained stoic as Stephanie kept speaking, “Didn’t think you’d show.”

Nicole shrugged, pulling a cigarette out of her pocket and sticking it behind her ear, her bobbed hair falling over her cheeks. Waverly thought back at how she used to brush that hair out of her face and felt bottomless for a second.

“What are you cats doing here?” Mercedes asked, eyeing Doc who was now leaning against the side of the car with his arms crossed. He almost looked sober but his glossy eyes gave it away.

“We decided to jump by, keep you babes some company.” He said, tipping his hat to Wynonna. Waverly almost didn’t see her, she had arrived later than the rest of the girls and she stood behind the group.

Wynonna stepped out of the shadow and towards Doc, who straightened himself almost instantly.

“What say you, Doc? You got a lot to offer a girl.” She said, her eyes cold but the smirk on her face mischievous.

“You know it.” He chucked his cigarette onto the sidewalk, letting the smoke leave his lips slowly. The two did not break eye contact.

“Ay, Haught,” Doc croaked, absentmindedly “You don’t mind if I steal your rodders for a couple of hours, do you?”

Nicole didn’t have time to reply that Doc slid into the driver’s seat of the Chrysler and Wynonna climbed in the passenger seat. They started the car and pulled out of the driveway. Perry and Chrissy, who were making out leaning on the hood of the car, fell on the ground. Nicole got off just in time to not fall back on her ass. The car turned down the road and sped away.

“Holliday!” Nicole shouted after him, taking a few running steps before realizing it was useless. “Holliday, you prick!”

Waverly rolled her eyes at Wynonna's behaviour. How typical of her to run away with Doc Holliday in the middle of the night. Wouldn't have been the first time Waverly had to witness the Bonnie and Clyde duo sneaking away.

"Hey, Haught?" Jeremy's small voice spoke as he walked to stand by her. "I'm taking Dolls home."

"No, please don't leave me here alone." Nicole pleaded.

"I'm sorry. I'll see you Monday, yeah?"

The pair walked off — more like Jeremy limped down the sidewalk while holding a too-drunk-to-stand Dolls.

"Assholes," Nicole muttered. She slowly turned around to face the group. Chrissy and Perry had their arms around each other and the other Pink Ladies stood right in front of her. Waverly felt suddenly self-conscious, standing before her while she was in her pyjamas. She almost wanted to tell her to look away out of embarrassment.

“So? You coming upstairs, Haught?” Stephanie asked, stepping forward. Waverly saw Nicole’s jaw tighten and she bit the inside of her cheek nervously.

“C’mon, Haught!” Perry had a wild grin on his face “It’s gonna be a gas!"

Nicole shook her head and stuffed her hands into her jacket pockets “Whatever. I’m going to Shorty’s.”

Before Nicole could turn around and walk away, something inside Waverly clicked. Wynonna had abandoned her, Chrissy had left her for Perry and Waverly refused to spend the rest of the night playing another round of truth or dare with Stephanie Jones. So she stepped out from behind the remaining Pink Ladies and, with a trembling voice, squeaked “Can I come with?”

Nicole didn’t make an effort to hide the surprise on her face and neither did everyone else. Nicole took a second to nod. "You're still in your PJs though."

Waverly nodded shyly. "Give me a second to change, yeah? I'll be right down."

♬ ♪ ♫

Waverly changed in her clothes fairly quickly. She replaced her short-sleeved pyjama and booty shorts with an aquamarine top and yellow shorts with matching azure sandals. Nicole's jaw almost dropped when she saw her leave Stephanie's house. The walk to Shorty’s was surprisingly quiet. Nicole had searched her brain for any kind of topic they could speak of but nothing came to mind. Nothing other than school and the notorious story of the Earp family. Nicole didn’t know much about it, other than the rumours of which there were many versions. The original was that Willa Earp, the Earp’s third daughter, had been abused and killed by her father. Ward Earp was a former sheriff of Purgatory with a big drinking problem. He had been thrown out of Shorty’s countless times for getting too drunk and throwing beer bottles across the bar so many citizens suspected of his self-control at home.

Instead of bringing up such a topic, Nicole preferred staying quiet. And she definitely wasn't going to mention their time spent together that summer. She had meant what she said: they wouldn't do this now that school had started again. Nicole couldn't help but feel her stomach tighten at the thought of someone finding out about them. Stephanie already knew too much and if the cops knew what she did... Nicole shuddered.

They arrived at Shorty’s and took a seat at a small table right under a Route 66 sign. There was only one menu so the girls leaned over the table to read it together.

“What are you getting?” Waverly croaked shyly. Nicole pursed her lips “Burger, milkshake and fries. You?”

“That sounds delicious, I’ll have the same.”

Nicole shut the menu and leaned back in her chair, a smile playing on her face “You have quite an appetite for being such an ankle biter.”

Waverly matched her playful smirk. “Are you calling me a child?”

“Only because you’re shorter than me.” She winked at her and pulled her cigarette from behind her ear and stuck it between her lips. A waitress passed by and took their orders but not before scolding Nicole about the cigarette which the redhead tucked back behind her ear.

When the waitress left, Nicole said: “Why did you want to leave the party?”

Waverly shrugged, playing with the ring on her finger. “I dunno. It was a drag.”

Nicole nodded. “Tell me about it.”

"What about you?"

"I can't stand Stephanie's bullshit looks and jokes. I'm on edge every time she opens her fucking mouth." Nicole's jaw set and her fists balled up onto the table.

Waverly's eyebrows shot to the ceiling. "Cool you rodders. You've never told me you were this scared."

Nicole shrugged. "I didn't want you to worry."

"Well, it's too late now."

Their orders arrived and the tension faded. Nicole took immediately a bite of her burger. Waverly copied her movements, but less ravenously.

Soon Nicole was done and Waverly was still nibbling away at her sandwich. “I can tell,”

“Put aside your burger and get the fries and the shake. Trust me, you’ll go ape for this.” Nicole said. The brunette followed her instruction.

“Do this.” Nicole picked up a French fry from her tray, dipped it in her tall glass of chocolate milkshake and then popped it in her mouth. Waverly apparently found this disgusting because her face was contorted into a grimace. Nicole laughed and nudged her foot with the tip of her shoe “C’mon, try it!”

Waverly hesitated but did as she was shown, dipping her fry into her strawberry milkshake and taking a bite of it. She looked back at Nicole with wide eyes “Holy crap! This is so good.” She dipped another fry and a popped it in her mouth “Mmh! Holy smokes, this is amazing.”

Nicole laughed “Innit?”

There was a static sound and the opening lines to “In the Still of The Night” echoed in the bar. Nicole went back to her own milkshake-dipped fries.

“I can’t believe you’ve never had milkshake fries.” Nicole shook her head as Waverly ate the last fry. "I blame myself for not getting you to try them."

Waverly laughed. "As you should. I can't believe you didn't share this paradise of flavour with me."

Nicole chuckled. Then, she felt Waverly's warm fingers wrap around her wrist and almost bolted right out of her seat. She played with the zipper on the cuff of Nicole's jacket.

"Are we gonna talk about it?" Waverly's voice was small and so quiet Nicole almost didn't hear her.

"Waves," Nicole sighed and Waverly met her eyes.

"Nicole, I spent the best summer of my life with you and I don't even know what we were."

"It was a summer fling, okay? It was summer-loving and now it's over." Nicole answered. Her voice was steady, not to scold Waverly but to state a fact.

Waverly lowered her eyes back to Nicole's hand resting on the table.

"I... I wanted it to be more than that." She whispered. Nicole felt her heart rise in her throat.

"But we can't," Nicole spoke like it was a fact they both knew. Because it was.

Someone bumped their table and they were jolted back to reality. Waverly fixed her top and Nicole pulled off her leather jacket, tying it around her hips, suddenly feeling hot and sticky.

Waverly pushed her plate away “I’m not hungry anymore. Those fries really filled me up.” She patted her stomach over her top.

Nicole smiled “I stand corrected. You don’t have a great appetite.”

“Does that mean I’m not an ankle-biter?”

“Oh no, you’re definitely an ankle-biter—ow!” Waverly kicked her under the table and laughed.

The last thing Nicole remembered before falling asleep that night was driving the girl home and Waverly Earp smiling at her from her front porch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't forget to leave kudos and comments!


	3. fries and shakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is a bit short and low on wayhaught interactions but I can't be the only one to think that nicole would be great at track and field
> 
> run faster than your problems can chase you,  
> fuhrelise

Lunch on Friday was a strange situation. Doc had ditched the T-Birds with the excuse that he had to catch up with some homework. Of course, all of that wasn’t entirely true and seeing him walk away with his arm around Wynonna was proof enough. As soon as Doc had left, everyone decided to follow suit so once again, Nicole was left alone at lunch: Dolls had football practice and Jeremy had to tutor Stan Pearson and Perry had gone to the Pink Ladies’ table. One brief smile from Waverly and a far-away smirk from Stephanie made her stomach churn and Nicole suddenly wasn’t hungry anymore.

She decided against sitting alone at a table and went to find the spot near the gym she had found her first year when she decided to skip her math test and go explore the school. It was a small space between the outside gym wall and the wall of the school, narrow enough for her to sit and chill. That’s usually what she did when she felt like being alone or when she needed to think. She only went there when the weather was nice and luckily, early October had warm weather, the sun still rising high with almost no clouds in sight. Nicole frowned at the thought that this weather would not last when November rolled around.

She fished a grilled cheese out of the brown paper bag, unwrapped it from the paper plastic and took a bite. Her mom was the Best Grilled Cheese Sandwich maker in the world, as Nicole had baptized her when she was only five. Nicole smiled at the memory, her tongue unravelling the gooey cheese and her teeth working on the crunchy bread. For some reason, biting down onto her lunch reminded Nicole of the burger she had with Waverly on homecoming night.

The doors to the gym opened and Nicole sighed heavily at her quiet moment being disrupted probably by a teacher who saw and followed her. Nicole was already halfway standing and ready to leave when Wynonna Earp rounded the corner and gave her a half-smirk. “What’s buzzin’, cousin?”

Nicole rolled her eyes and sat back down. “Hey, Earp.”

Wynonna settled next to her, legs extended. “Why are you lone wolfing?” She picked up Nicole’s brown bag and examined its contents.

“I got ditched. Weren’t you hanging out with Holliday?”

“Got tired of him. Can I have it?” Wynonna ignored her and pulled out Nicole’s other sandwich. The redhead was about to say no, but Wynonna had already unwrapped the grilled cheese and taken a bite of it. Nicole bit back her tongue and mentally noted to pass by the Frosty Palace later for a bite. Then, something came to mind. “You coming to see me tonight?”

Wynonna shrugged, not looking at her. “Course. You playing?”

“Running track isn’t exactly playing but yeah, sure.”

“Rad.” Wynonna nodded, biting down the last of the sandwich. She looked over and saw Nicole’s other unfinished sub. Nicole reluctantly gave it over. She finished it in under a minute.

“Can I bring the Ladies?” Wynonna asked after a moment.

Nicole shrugged, sticking her hands in her pockets. “Whatevs.”

“Okay. I only asked cause you and Steph don’t look like you’re on speaking terms.”

Nicole’s nails dug into the leather of her jacket. “So? No one said I gotta talk to her.”

Wynonna shrugged. “'Twas just a suggestion, cool your jets.”

The bell rang not a moment later. Wynonna stood and brushed herself off. “See you at the game, Haught.”

As she walked back in the school, Nicole leaned her head back against the wall and grumbled. “It’s not a game.”

♬ ♪ ♫

Waverly wanted nothing more but to stay home that evening. It was getting colder in Purgatory as Halloween rolled around. The snow wasn’t in season till mid-November, but the chill breeze crept its way through the cracks of the floorboards and Waverly just wanted to curl up in a blanket on the couch and read. But this wasn’t the case, because just as she was about to change into her pyjamas, Wynonna burst into her bedroom. Waverly jumped, pulling her half-off top back on to cover her body.

“Don’t undress.”

The younger Earp frowned. “What? Why?”

It was Wynonna’s turn to frown. “We’re going to see Haught run track. I told you, remember?”

Waverly quirked her brow then her mouth made the shape of an o.

Wynonna shook her head. “Don’t matter. Let’s go, I’ll buy us a pretzel there.” Waverly’s face lit up at the mention of the delicious street food, bending back down to pull her stiletto heels back on. When done, Wynonna hooked her arm with Waverly’s and pulled her downstairs. They shouted their goodbyes to their mom and they walked to Wynonna’s car, which was still running. Wynonna got in the driver’s side and Waverly slid in the shotgun. They drove up to Stephanie’s house and Waverly frowned.

“Wait, she invited them? Why?”

Wynonna shrugged. “Beats me.”

One honk of the car horn was all it took for the screaming Pink Ladies to scramble out of the house. Wynonna hit her head on the steering wheel.

“A horde of fucking chickens.” She groaned out.

Waverly bit back a smile. “It’s called a flock of chickens.”

Without looking up, Wynonna gave her the bird but Waverly could see a small smile ghost her lips. “Get bent, Earp.”

The Pink Ladies climbed in the backseats. Wynonna tried to drown them out with Eddie Cochran’s “C’mon Everybody” but it was futile. The girls were squawking inconsistently about how they had to look catch for the T-Birds tonight and how much fun they would have. Waverly looked over at Wynonna but her sister was looking at the road so she leaned her head against the window, focusing on the words of the songs that played on the radio.

They arrived at school shortly and Wynonna parked haphazardly in the school’s parking lot. The Pink Ladies left the car as soon as possible, running towards the field. Waverly walked behind them and turned around to motion Wynonna to follow. The older Earp waved her hand and stuck a cigarette in her mouth: go ahead, I’ll catch up.

Waverly and the rest of the Ladies found seats on the bleachers and sat as close as they could to the track. Unfortunately, the first seats had already been taken up by the T-Birds, who were making as much noise as possible, banging their hands on the metal railings and howling. Waverly slightly raised her head and saw on the illuminated track field five girls, all dressed in different coloured uniforms to indicate their school. Waverly almost didn’t recognize Nicole. She had brought her short hair up in a small ponytail and she was wearing a blue and white uniform, different from her usual leather jacket and white shirt. Coach Nedley stepped onto the track and he and Nicole exchanged a few private words before he stepped off the field.

He started announcing the names of the runners one by one and when he said Nicole’s name the crowd of Purgatory High students went wild. The runners got on their marks and Nedley raised his gun. Bang! The teenagers were off running on the track. Wynonna decided to suddenly slump in the seat next to Waverly’s. Her sister handed her a pretzel and Waverly happily took a bite. Wynonna frowned, “Why is Haught fourth? I came here to watch her win.”

Waverly spotted Nicole’s blue jersey. She had fallen behind the other runners. Waverly shrugged, “Maybe she’s saving herself up for last.” She was right; on the last lap, Nicole picked up her running pace, never sprinting but slowly speeding up. Soon, she went from being fourth to being third, to second, to crossing the finish line as first. Waverly got on her feet, cheering loudly and clapping and soon everyone followed suit. The Pink Ladies squealed and whooped loudly but the T-Birds were the ones being the loudest of them all, jumping and screaming and banging the metal railings. A chant soon started, everyone punching their fists in the air and shouting on repeat “Haught! Haught! Haught!”

The Ladies met Nicole and the T-Birds in the parking lot. The girls immediately crowded Nicole as soon as they saw her.

“You were catch, Haught!” Stephanie complimented. Nicole nervously smiled down at her, shyly pulling away from the grip she had on her biceps.

“Yeah, thanks Steph.” She met Waverly’s eyes and smiled, “Thanks for coming.”

Waverly shrugged, smiling back.

Wynonna wrapped her arm around Waverly’s shoulders and pulled her closer, “Your victory calls for celebration, Haught. Shorty’s anyone?”

They all cheered in agreement.

♬ ♪ ♫

Friday nights at Shorty’s could very easily get crowded. Upon arrival, the two groups found it hard enough to walk in, let alone find a table. Wynonna announced she was going to get something to then eat outside in the parking lot. The Pink Ladies and T-Birds followed her inside to order something for themselves. Waverly just asked Wynonna to get her a smoothie and Nicole claimed she wasn’t hungry so the two girls stayed outside. Nicole and Waverly were leaning against the hood of Nicole’s car. The ginger had her arms crossed and she stared at the road while Waverly unconsciously played with her ring. Nicole was almost tempted to reach in her pocket and make herself a roll-up but decided against it when she remembered Waverly didn't like the smell of smoke.

There was silence, but it was comfortable. Neither of the two knew what to say but that was okay. They enjoyed each other’s presence whether that included talking or not. The only sounds were crickets and a gentle breeze that shook the leaves. Nicole inhaled, feeling the familiar winter air washing over her.

With a deep exhale, she got Waverly’s attention, who eyed her curiously before speaking, “Good job.”

Nicole cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow at her, then it hit her. “Oh, the race. Yeah, thanks.” She shrugged and stuck her hands in her pockets.

“I always loved watching you run. Since we were kids. Remember?” Waverly smiled at the thought and soon so did Nicole.

She remembered being ten, running from one end of the Earp's backyard to the other while Waverly cheered her on from the patio. Then she remembered everything that happened before and after that. The day Waverly Earp had allowed a much taller ginger to play with her during playtime in kindergarten. The days spent playing together in summer when it was too hot to be outside and going to middle school together every morning and returning on the same bus every evening. Then Nicole got her driver's licence and she made new friends and so did Waverly. The months they spent only waving hello to each other in the hallways. Then Waverly kissed her and Nicole had never felt so confused.

"Yeah." Nicole said and then laughed, "Remember when I fell once and scraped my knee so bad but I didn't want Gus to find out so you bandaged me?"

Waverly laughed along, "Yeah, you really wanted that blue one with the stars. And then Gus found out and scolded the hell out of us.”

They both laughed and then it was quiet.

“I miss those days,” Waverly said. “It was much simpler back then.”

“We went our separate ways. It happens.”

Waverly bit her lower lip and met Nicole’s eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“What for? It’s not your fault.”

Silence fell again. Nicole looked at Waverly and for a moment she just appreciated her. Her eyes drew the outlines of her profile, the light from the street lamps hitting her in a way that it made her eyes twinkle softly in the darkness.

Nicole was so distracted by the view that she barely noticed Wynonna slumping next to her on the hood of her car, munching on her chips. Nicole snatched a ketchup-covered fry from Wynonna’s batch. The older Earp was about to protest but Nicole pointed a fry at her: “This is what you get for stealing my grilled cheese.”

Wynonna frowned. Nicole turned back to Waverly but she had moved and was now sitting on the bench in front of the fast-food with Chrissy.

Stephanie and Mercedes were each sipping their milkshakes while Perry, Dolls, Doc and Jeremy climbed I’m the back of the car, eating burgers and passing a cigarette around.

Nicole bit the inside of her cheek till it bled and she didn't complain when they demanded to put a Dean Martin cassette on their way home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't forget to leave kudos and comments!

**Author's Note:**

> please remember to leave kudos and comments!


End file.
